Today in History

Published: October 18, 2016 11:00 AM

Today is Tuesday, Oct. 18, the 292nd day of 2016. There are 74 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Oct. 18, 1962, James D. Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins were honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology for determining the double-helix molecular structure of DNA.

On this date:

In 1767, the Mason-Dixon line, the boundary between colonial Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware, was set as astronomers Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon completed their survey.

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In 1867, the United States took formal possession of Alaska from Russia.

In 1892, the first long-distance telephone line between New York and Chicago was officially opened (it could only handle one call at a time).

In 1922, the British Broadcasting Co., Ltd. (later the British Broadcasting Corp.) was founded.

In 1931, inventor Thomas Alva Edison died in West Orange, New Jersey, at age 84.

In 1969, the federal government banned artificial sweeteners known as cyclamates because of evidence they caused cancer in laboratory rats.

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In 1997, a monument honoring American servicewomen, past and present, was dedicated at Arlington National Cemetery.

Ten years ago: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, visiting Tokyo, said the United States was willing to use its full military might to defend Japan in light of North Korea's nuclear test. The Dow Jones industrial average passed 12,000 for the first time before pulling back to close at 11,992.68.

Five years ago: Fifty wild animals were released by the owner of a Zanesville, Ohio, farm, Terry Thompson, who then committed suicide; authorities killed 48 of the creatures, while the remaining two were presumed eaten by other animals.

Thought for Today: "Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast -- you also miss the sense of where you are going and why." -- Eddie Cantor, American comedian-singer (1892-1964).